The former Shooto
Americas champion throttled Ben Nguyen in
the third round of their
UFC 221 “Romero vs. Rockhold” prelim on Saturday at Perth Arena
in Perth, Australia. Nguyen (18-7, 4-2 UFC) lost consciousness 1:43
into Round 3, his modest two-fight winning streak at an end.

Da Silva (21-5, 7-4 UFC) took down and mounted the South Dakota
native in the first round, then withstood an elbow strike that
split him open near the hairline in the second. No one could have
envisioned what led to the finish. Da Silva countered an early
third-round head kick with a perfectly timed spinning backfist that
floored the taekwondo black belt and left him vulnerable to the
follow-up attack. “Formiga” moved to the back and cinched the
fight-ending choke on the still-dazed Nguyen.

‘Maestro’ Kim Edges Brown

Dong
Hyun Kim extended his winning streak to three fights with a
split decision over Damien
Brown in a competitive undercard confrontation at 155 pounds.
All three cageside judges scored it 29-28, two of them siding with
Kim (16-8-3, 3-2 UFC).

Both men leaned heavily on leg kicks. Kim fed the
Integrated MMA export a consistent jab and strung together his
combinations with more regularity and to greater effect. Brown
(17-12, 2-4 UFC) flurried occasionally -- he connected with a left
hook-right uppercut combo in the first round -- but failed to give
the South Korean striker pause on the feet.

Brown, 33, has lost three fights in a row.

Debuting Adesanya Shreds Wilkinson

Glory Kickboxing
alum Israel
Adesanya put away Rob
Wilkinson with knees and punches in the second round of their
undercard tilt at 185 pounds. Wilkinson (11-2, 0-2 UFC) withered
3:37 into Round 2, as he lost for the second time in as many starts
inside the Octagon.

Adesanya (12-0, 1-0 UFC) was measured and methodical. Wilkinson
spent much of the first round whiffing on takedowns and attempting
to bully the Nigerian striker in the clinch. His efforts proved
fruitless. Adesanya blasted him with knees to the face and stiff
jabs, all while focusing on the body with damaging combinations. He
broke the battered and bloodied Wilkinson’s will along the fence
and
cut loose with knees and punches until it was over.

The 28-year-old Adesanya has stopped all 12 of his opponents inside
two rounds.

Volkanovski (17-1, 4-0 UFC) was flawless. He set the tone with an
overwhelming first round, as he took down Kennedy and bludgeoned
him with punches and elbows. It was a harbinger of what was to
come. Volkanovski powered into top position once again in Round 2,
smothered the Canadian and
unleashed another sustained burst of elbows and punches that
prompted referee Marc Goddard
to act.

The 29-year-old Volkanovski has recorded 14 straight wins and
appears to be a serious threat at 145 pounds.

Resilient Pearson Snaps Skid

Ross
Pearson saw his hand raised for the first time in nearly three
years, as he claimed a unanimous decision from former Sengoku and
Deep
champion Mizuto
Hirota in a three-round undercard clash at 155 pounds. All
three cageside judges sided with Pearson (20-14, 12-11 UFC): 30-27,
30-27 and 29-28.

Hirota (18-9-2, 1-4-1 UFC) was never out of it. He landed leg kicks
on a consistent basis and buckled Pearson late in the second round,
where he followed a pair of sweeping left hooks with a crushing
right cross. However, the bell and the respite between rounds
worked against him. Pearson recovered, utilized excellent head
movement and countered effectively throughout, bashing his
36-year-old adversary with shovel uppercuts, punishing jabs and
well-conceived left hooks.

The win snapped a four-fight losing streak for Pearson.

Surging Quinonez Downs Ishihara

“The Ultimate Fighter Latin America” finalist Jose
Alberto Quinonez pushed his run of consecutive victories to
four with a unanimous verdict against Teruto
Ishihara in their preliminary bantamweight affair. Quinonez
(7-2, 4-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28
marks from the judges.

Lack of output conspired against Ishihara (10-5-2, 3-3-1 UFC).
Quinonez struck for a takedown in the first round, stuffed the
Team Alpha Male export against the fence and advanced to the
back. Kicks to Ishihara’s upper and lower lead leg proved to be his
most effective weapons later in the fight and allowed him to bounce
back from being floored late in the second round, the knockdown the
result of a left hook just above the ear.

The 26-year-old Ishihara has lost three times in his last four
appearances.

Jumeau Overcomes Unbeaten Abe

Phuket Top Team representative Luke Jumeau
won for the eighth time in nine appearances, as he captured a
unanimous decision from Daichi Abe
in a three-round undercard battle at 170 pounds. All three cageside
judges scored it for Jumeau (13-4, 2-1 UFC): 29-28, 29-27 and
28-27.

Abe (6-1, 1-1 UFC) jumped out to a quick lead. The 26-year-old
former Pancrase
champion had Jumeau reeling on more than one occasion in the
opening round, and by the time the first five minutes were up, the
New Zealand native was bleeding from the mouth and had significant
swelling around his left eye. Abe started to show signs of fatigue
in the middle stanza, where his counterpart executed a trip
takedown and zeroed in on the body.

Jumeau carried his momentum into the third round. He withstood a
right hook that cut him beneath his already damaged left eye and
found another gear, incorporating occasional body shots and
overhand rights with stinging leg kicks, two of which knocked Abe
off his feet.